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FAMOUS FLUBS OF PROVIDENCE RADIO

Z

za-rex

Guest
Over the years, things that not only didn't work out but probably never should have happened:
Anything on 550 between the music days in the late 80s to Radio Disney (The Buzz, etc)
Joan Rivers on WPRO (how long was she on anyway?)
Air America on WHJJ
Let's not even get into WALE
KKB: yeah, a rock station aiming for an audience in the very ethnic SE Mass
Z100: not only did they sound crappy but any fool could have seen an 80s format was "du jour"
The Hawk: what was this? Weren't both HJY and WRX on the air at the time?
I don't feel like wracking my brain thinking of any others. I didn't include The Edge since at the time the flannel hoodie bandwagon probably sounded like a good idea. Also the flubs in progress at Coast and B101 aren't really flubs since cutting staff to the bare minimum is probably a good idea from a financial standpoint.
Any others?
 
ONLY Salty could get away with it!

We packed the Rocky Point Palladium for a free concert by Orleans, whose "Dance With Me" was then top-10.

I was supposed to introduce Salty, who was going to say-a-few-words-about a promotion we were doing for Cystic Fibrosis, then I was to introduce the band.

One aspect of the promotion was the-opportunity-to-win a $100 US Savings Bond, cool beans in the mid-70s, from Old Stone Bank.
("Yabba-dabba-doo. LOVE that Old Stone Bank!")

Winging-it, as-lovably-as-he-did, Salty made the crowd ROAR when he announced "YOU COULD WIN FIVE...THOUSAND...DOLLARS CASH!"

It actually came-off funny, like a rehearsed Smothers Brothers-type bit, when I elbowed-him and, gently, corrected him, and he laughed-that-laugh.

HC
www.HollandCooke.com
 
Is it me or is radio one field where those that flub always get a chance to flub again and again and again?
 
za-rex said:
Over the years, things that not only didn't work out but probably never should have happened:
Anything on 550 between the music days in the late 80s to Radio Disney (The Buzz, etc)
Joan Rivers on WPRO (how long was she on anyway?)
Air America on WHJJ
Let's not even get into WALE
KKB: yeah, a rock station aiming for an audience in the very ethnic SE Mass
Z100: not only did they sound crappy but any fool could have seen an 80s format was "du jour"
The Hawk: what was this? Weren't both HJY and WRX on the air at the time?
I don't feel like wracking my brain thinking of any others. I didn't include The Edge since at the time the flannel hoodie bandwagon probably sounded like a good idea. Also the flubs in progress at Coast and B101 aren't really flubs since cutting staff to the bare minimum is probably a good idea from a financial standpoint.
Any others?
Click to expand...


As for the 550 frequency I think that is the best AM frequency in the state.You can pick that up anywhere and it is almost always clear.
I dont mind the existence of Radio Disney but I think "The Buzz" as Talk could have been a good alternative today.

100.3- Should have been left alone as a Jazz station until WKKB-Spanish came into the picture.
If you liked "The Hawk" The Bee is almost identical to what the WHKK was then.

Z100- Being a child of the 80's very disappointed in the playlist. I swear it was 2 Cd's on stuck on the repeat mode.Not enough variety.
Did we ever find out what the "MORE " meant in their slogan. Maybe it was because they played "My Sharona" by The Knack(1979).

WHJJ-Air America. We knew that was not happening.As liberal as Rhode Island is Libral Talk does not work here in R.I.

WWBB-With The declining ratings and the Blah sound they now have.A total overhaul is now needed in a desperate way.Possibly a new format,station whatever altogether.

You did not mention "The Score".A waste of two frequencies and talent.Two bad it took 4 or five years to realize WEEI had the market entirely.


Now for smart moves.

WWLI- Going Live with most shifts when everyone else is VT'ed or automated.Espiecaily on the weekend.

WPRO-moving to the FM on 99.7

790 AM flip to oldies.I personally like my music on the FM but some people I tlk to like the nostalgic sound of these songs being played on the AM rather than FM.

990-WALE- The year of silence on that frequency was the bast the station sounded in years.

Crossing over the border alittle bit. Greater Media's decision to put Country on 102.5.WKLB covers most of Rhode Island just as good as WCTK and a great alternative to The Cat.

103.7-Flip to WEEI's simulcast of Boston's 850 WEEI. The best thing that ever happened on that frequency.

and how can we forget WBRU's stunt of "Buddy-FM". For 24 hours Providence had a taste of a "JACK-FM" format that kept all of us radio geeks glued to our radio to see what was the next song.Patsy Cline into Ace of Base into Boston's More than a feeling.I loved it.
 
My nominees for flubs (this will be wide-ranging):
1. Coast's adoption of the "Coast" moniker. As other posters pointed out, the "Star" experiment was a one-week disaster. But there was no reason to stop referring to WSNE by its call-letters. That self-identifying moniker had survived twenty years in the market. Case in point is the fact that many people today still refer to Coast by its call letters.
2. Coast's simultaneous use of Ryan Seacrest and John Tesh. No matter what music is being played, I cannot imagine a scenario in which both personalities fit within a single format.
3. The obliteration of the air staffs at Coast, B101, and WHJJ.
4. The various format reincarnations during the 1990s at the 100.3 frequency. From Retro Dance to Classic Hits to 80s, Citadel never gave the station a budget, thus setting it up for consistent failure. As Kenny correctly pointed out, the 80s format had a ridiculously tight playlist. Despite 80s being a format du jour, there are markets in which 80s formats STILL thrive a decade later. For example, Tampa still has "the Point," which plays "80s and More."
5. When it was 99.7 the Edge, why did the station stray so many times from its Alternative format? Despite a weak signal, the station performed very well in the summer of 1995, when it debuted. But the station went Active Rock, AOR, and then it finally returned to its Alternative roots. A weak air staff did not help the situation.
6. WFNX/Phoenix's purchase of the 103.7 frequency. Unfortunately, Jaxon and the Pharmacist's turn as morning hosts did not work out as planned.
7. Lack of balance in local talk radio. All conservative all the time is quite boring, as is the case in nearly every market in America.
 
I strongly disagree with labeling "KKB" as a flub. As some of you may recall, KKB blew HJY out of the water when it first hit the airwaves. It was programmed very well. And who could forget the liners taking aim right at HJY?

"H...J...Y...???"

I lived in the area at the time. I had listened to HJY for years, but tuned into KKB when I heard it on in a friend's car once. I listened to it quite a bit until it went off the air. Had it not been for the unfortunate circumstances that took place forcing Citadel to sell the frequency, KKB would have continued to kill HJY. The best thing going for HJY these days are Paul & Al IMHO.
 
GenrlMtrsRadioGuy said:
I strongly disagree with labeling "KKB" as a flub. As some of you may recall, KKB blew HJY out of the water when it first hit the airwaves. It was programmed very well. And who could forget the liners taking aim right at HJY?

"H...J...Y...???"

I lived in the area at the time. I had listened to HJY for years, but tuned into KKB when I heard it on in a friend's car once. I listened to it quite a bit until it went off the air. Had it not been for the unfortunate circumstances that took place forcing Citadel to sell the frequency, KKB would have continued to kill HJY. The best thing going for HJY these days are Paul & Al IMHO.
Click to expand...

I don't understand where KKB blew HJY out of the water. What water? Not in Providence. In the New Bedford Fall River market? Those numbers have been embargoes for years so who knows? KKB may have nibbled away at HJY's audience but the P1s would never switch as HJY is more of a way of life than anything else. Establishing a rocker in Bristol County was not a good idea. I think there was a quote about making the station as successful as FUN107 is, which would not have happened given the audience composition in that area. I agree KKB sounded good musically and the younger staff may have clicked well with a younger rock audience but we'll never really know at this point. The most I see is a minor effect on HJY's audience but not enough to make a difference.
 
GenrlMtrsRadioGuy said:
I strongly disagree with labeling "KKB" as a flub. As some of you may recall, KKB blew HJY out of the water when it first hit the airwaves. It was programmed very well.
Click to expand...

KKB was terrible. Turning Michael Rock into this badass with a tough guy pose on the website was downright ridiculous. HJY won that war on day 1.
 
KKB was not terrible.....had the station been allowed to build itself, i think it would have caused some damage....i know a few people who preffered it over HJY, especially for the music, actually alot more than a few...i think you are in the minority here
 
I guess I should ammend what I said. The concept was terrible. Nobody's going to beat HJY. They own rock in Providence. Besides, to even attempt to take them on with such a lousey signal just accelerates the disaster.
 
GenrlMtrsRadioGuy said:
Had it not been for the unfortunate circumstances that took place forcing Citadel to sell the frequency, KKB would have continued to kill HJY.
Click to expand...

What "unfortunate circumstances"? I seem to recall that both WKKB and WAKX 102.7 were both sold for a quick payday for Citadel...
 
Jeff,
WKKB was not trying to compete with WHJY in Providence. They were trying only to capture the New Bedford market. WKKB's studios were even moved into Citadel's Fairhaven location alongside WBSM and WFHN. Citadel was expecting it to take time, but like Fun eventually overtook PRO-FM in New Bedford, the hope was that 'KKB would eventually overrun 'HJY.
 
If I'm not mistaken KKB was running something referring to themselves as #1 so I assume that would have been in a specific New Bedford demographic.I assume the station was there to get the Citadel Fairhaven cluster some male numbers.Music was good but it was wildly uneven and I am willing to bet some of those who worked there were on their first jobs and have not seen the inside of a radio station since.
 
Then how do you explain the liners poking fun at HJY?
[/quote]

Remember, WHJY was the number one Rock-formatted station in New Bedford. Poking fun of 'HJY was one way to draw New Bedford listeners away from WHJY. In addition, as would have been expected WKKB was trying to skim off whatever Providence listeners from 'HJY that it could.
 
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